Lakota Dream Museum & Monument Opens In Rapid City

The first Native-owned and operated Rapid City museum, Lakota Dream, opened last weekend, reports KOTA Territory News. Twenty-three year old president and founder Adonis Saltes hopes that this museum will reach the minds and hearts of visitors.

The museum, located at 629 Main Street in Rapid City, is home to sacred Native relics and regalia and allows visitors to experience Native American culture through the stories of its people. The Lakota Dream Museum plans to be the first Native-owned and operates museum and cultural education center in order to facilitate the return and protection of Indigenous Peoples’ artifacts. They hope to honor the living memories of Indigenous peoples “by providing cultural, social, and educational programs grounded in the oral traditions and traditional knowledge systems unique to their communities”.

The museum’s mission is to provide an accurate interpretation of Great Plains tribes through documented resources, artifacts, and local history. Using these, the museum’s leadership intends to instill knowledge, a strong sense of identity, and hope into the Lakota and all Native people. The museum’s current location hopes to highlight the deep historical and present connection between Indigenous groups and the Black Hills.